To accurately form and position false teeth or caps, a dentist makes a negative impression of the patient's teeth. The impression is generally of a full arch or of a quadrant, that is of a half arch. This impression serves as a mold for making a dental model.
Dental models can be made from the negative mold in several manners. FIG. 1 is an exemplary dental model 100 generally representative of the methods. FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of a full arch dental model 100 including a positive die 101 of the teeth 102 and gums 104. An individual die 101A of an individual tooth 102A is shown cut out and removed.
To make the dental model 100 of FIG. 1, curable stone 110 is poured into the negative impression up to a point approximating the patient's gum line. An arch plate 120 includes an arch-shaped body 122 including a plurality of holes 135 distributed over the arch and removable protruding pins 130 in holes 135. Arch plate 120 is pressed into the wet stone in the negative impression such that pins 130 protrude into model gums 104. Arch plate 120 is typically made of strong plastic.
After curing, removal from the impression, and some trimming, dental model 100 results. Pins 130 protrude up into the stone gum 104 and body 122 underlies gum 104. Individual dies 101A of a tooth 102A are made by cutting on each side of tooth 102A down to body 122. Individual die 101A can be removed. Pins 130 provide for individual dies 101A to be reinserted in holes 135 of body 122 of arch plate 120 exactly the same place in dental model 100 for testing. Individual die 101A could include more that one tooth 102.
Conventionally, individual dies 101A are cut out with a manual coping saw. A coping saw is used because the saw blade must be very thin so as to destroy as little of the model as possible. The thinness of the blade necessitates that the blade is tensioned at both ends. The cutting out of individual dies 101A is very time consuming.
Therefore, there has been a need for an improved cutting device for more quickly cutting out individual dies 101A from a dental model.